Catholic Commentary on Psalm 10

"You, Lord, hear the desire of the afflicted; you encourage them, and you listen to their cry." (Psalm 10:17)

Where Is God When the Wicked Prosper?

Psalm 10 opens with one of the most honest questions in all of Scripture: Why, Lord, do you stand far off? Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble? This is not the question of an atheist or a rebel. It is the question of someone who believes in God's justice and cannot reconcile that belief with what they see around them: the wicked person prospering, hunting the poor, blaspheming God and getting away with it. The psalmist's faith produces the question, not the other way around. It is precisely because he knows God is just that the injustice around him is intolerable.

The portrait of the wicked person in the middle of the psalm is drawn in sharp detail. He boasts of his heart's desire, blesses the greedy, reviles the Lord in his arrogance. He says to himself: God has forgotten; he covers his face and never sees. He lies in wait like a lion in cover to catch the helpless. He says in his heart: God will never notice.

The Lord Sees

Then the psalm turns. It has described the lie that the wicked live by: God does not see. Now it proclaims the truth: But you, God, see the trouble of the afflicted; you consider their grief and take it in hand. The victim commits themselves to you; you are the helper of the fatherless. This is the pastoral heart of the psalm. The wicked say God does not see. The psalm says he does. The wicked say God will not call them to account. The psalm says he will. The Lord is king forever. He breaks the arm of the wicked. He hears the desire of the afflicted and encourages their heart.

The Catechism teaches that God's care for the poor and the oppressed is not a peripheral concern but central to his identity as revealed in Scripture (CCC 2443). The preferential option for the poor that Catholic social teaching articulates is not a modern invention. It is the consistent testimony of the Psalter.

Living the Word

Brothers and sisters, Psalm 10 gives you permission to bring the question of divine silence honestly before God. Where are you, Lord? Why do you stand far off? This is not faithlessness. It is the prayer of a faithful person overwhelmed by evidence that seems to contradict their faith. God can receive this prayer. Bring it to him. The psalm ends not with the question but with the answer: he hears the desire of the afflicted. He listens to their cry.

Prayer

Lord God, why do you stand far off? We bring you our confusion at the prosperity of the wicked and the suffering of the innocent. You see the trouble of the afflicted. You take it in hand. You hear their desire. Encourage our hearts and act, O Lord, for you are king forever. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

10
The Perils of the Pilgrim
1 Why, O LORD, do You stand far off?
Why do You hide in times of trouble?
2 In pride the wicked pursue the needy;
let them be caught in the schemes they devise.
 
3 For the wicked man boasts in the cravings of his heart;
he blesses the greedy and reviles the LORD.
4 In his pride the wicked man does not seek Him;
in all his schemes there is no God.
5 He is secure in his ways at all times;
Your lofty judgments are far from him;
he sneers at all his foes.
6 He says to himself, “I will not be moved;
from age to age I am free of distress.”
 
7 His mouth is full of cursing, deceit,* 10:7 LXX bitterness; cited in Romans 3:14 and violence;
trouble and malice are under his tongue.
8 He lies in wait near the villages;
in ambush he slays the innocent;
his eyes watch in stealth for the helpless.
9 He lies in wait like a lion in a thicket;
he lurks to seize the oppressed;
he catches the lowly in his net.
10 They are crushed and beaten down;† 10:10 Or He crouches and lies low
the hapless fall prey to his strength.
11 He says to himself, “God has forgotten;
He hides His face and never sees.”
 
12 Arise, O LORD! Lift up Your hand, O God!
Do not forget the helpless.
13 Why has the wicked man renounced God?
He says to himself, “You will never call me to account.”
14 But You have regarded trouble and grief;
You see to repay it by Your hand.
The victim entrusts himself to You;
You are the helper of the fatherless.
15 Break the arm of the wicked and evildoer;
call him to account for his wickedness
until none is left to be found.
 
16 The LORD is King forever and ever;
the nations perish from His land.
17 You have heard, O LORD, the desire of the humble;
You will strengthen their hearts.
You will incline Your ear,
18 to vindicate the fatherless and oppressed,
that the men of the earth
may strike terror no more.

*10:7 10:7 LXX bitterness; cited in Romans 3:14

†10:10 10:10 Or He crouches and lies low

Public Domain